Mercer Island Islanders senior Max Tanzer, right, slides safely into third base on a close play while being tagged by Interlake third baseman Charlie Galanti in the top of the fourth inning. Mercer Island defeated Interlake, 11-0, on April 17 in Bellevue. Photo courtesy of Jim Nicholson

Islanders shut out the Saints

Mercer Island senior pitcher Liam Dammeier was in the zone against the Interlake Saints in a 3A/2A KingCo baseball matchup.

Dammier surrendered just one hit, had six strikeouts and allowed no runs in 4 2/3 innings of work, propelling the Islanders to an 11-0 victory against the Saints on April 17 in Bellevue. Interlake loaded the bases in the top of the fourth but Dammeier enticed Interlake hitter Jonathan Ryou to ground out to quell the threat. Mercer Island, which has won three consecutive games by a margin of 10 runs, improved its overall record to 8-6 with the win. Interlake dropped to 6-8 with the loss.

Mercer Island head coach Dominic Woody is always completely comfortable when Dammeier has the ball in his hands on the hill.

“Liam did the same thing he has been doing all year for us. He went out there and got a bunch zeros. He has been doing that all year for us and we obviously expect him to keep doing it. He was stellar today,” Woody said of Dammeier.

Dammeier said winning three games in a row by a sizable margin after losing its previous four games has given his squad a confidence boost.

“We just mercy ruled (victory by 10 runs or more) three teams in a row, which has never been done under Dominic Woody who is probably the most decorated coach ever in Mercer Island. It is huge for us. Now that we’ve had three straight games where we’ve hit, pitched and fielded well, the sky is the limit for us. We can beat any team in my opinion,” Dammeier said.

Mercer Island’s bats were hot against Interlake. The Islanders scored three runs in the top of the third and the top of the fourth to put the game away early. Islanders’ slugger Carson Ernst went 3-for-3 with two RBIs. Mercer Island senior Cole Miller went 3-for-4 with three RBIs. Woody is thrilled to see his team continue its ascent after losing four games in a row in late March to early April.

“It has just been a continuation of what we’ve had going the last couple of games. It is nice to see the bats come alive. You are seeing from everybody, which is what you want to see this time of year,” Woody said.

Mercer Island senior starting pitcher Liam Dammeier, who surrendered just one hit and no runs in 4 2/3 innings of work, propelled the Islanders to an 11-0 win against Interlake on April 17 in Bellevue. Photo courtesy of Jim Nicholson